


The Stiles Special

by Welsh_Woman



Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Coffee Shops & Cafés, Alternate Universe - High School, Alternate Universe - Human, Debates of Coffee, F/M, Fluff, Getting Together, M/M, Pining Derek Hale, unapologetic fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-16
Updated: 2018-12-16
Packaged: 2019-09-20 02:32:45
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,057
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17013912
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Welsh_Woman/pseuds/Welsh_Woman
Summary: The only sweetness Derek wants with his coffee is Stiles.





	The Stiles Special

**Author's Note:**

  * For [backwiththemadness-champion](https://archiveofourown.org/gifts?recipient=backwiththemadness-champion).



Derek has never really been one for those really expensive dates, believing instead that the time spent with someone was a lot more important than the money. He still thinks that even though this little endeavor has cost him a pretty penny and probably has numbed about half of his taste buds.  
  
That’s not to say he hasn’t earned anything, besides an almost encyclopedic amount of knowledge on different kinds of beans and brews, but he thinks that this moment will be the biggest gift that he could possibly gain from all of this…  
  
…if he can actually go through with it.  
  
See, the thing is this: Stiles and he have been talking. Short, how’s-the-weather conversations at first, sure, but it has evolved into hour-long discussions on everything from their favorite superhero to where they see themselves in three years.  
  
It’s gotten so bad that Jordan or Lydia have to come over and pull one of them away because they’ve forgotten about studying, prior engagements, or even _eating_ once!  
  
Derek had been tempted, when Stiles’ stomach had made a rumbling sound after Lydia’s question, to offer to take him out to eat. The only thing that had stopped him was that he didn’t want Stiles to think that their first date – and it _would_ be a date, Derek would make _sure_ Stiles knew that – was some sort of pity thing and that Derek only did it because he felt bad for keeping Stiles from eating.  
  
Now, though, Derek is completely sure that his intentions are a hundred percent clear and that there is no way that Stiles could possibly misconstrue this.  
  
Derek had spent the past week, ever since learning of Stiles’ favorite drink, using every spare moment he had at _A Handful of Beans_ trying to make the complicated order that looked like you needed a decryptor to just read the damn thing.  
  
He had asked Jordan, in the beginning, to be his taste tester and almost immediately regretted it when he nearly got a face full of sugared coffee after Jordan took his first mouthful.  
  
He should have known better; Jordan is as much a ‘coffee purist’ as he is, not even having _sugar_ in his coffee!  
  
Derek has since been tasting it himself, remembering vividly the buzzing in his skull that he had after forcing down the small cup that Stiles had insisted that he try.  
  
(He _had_ tried to finish it all but could only manage a few swallows before dumping the rest in the employee breakroom’s sink. He thinks Stiles knows that he didn’t finish the drink, but instead of teasing him about it, Stiles has just been making remarks about Derek only liking ‘pure, untarnished’ coffee, with a look of what Derek hopes is fondness on his face.)  
  
Thankfully, despite his hope that this will go well, Jordan happens to walk into _A Handful of Beans_ right as Derek’s working himself up. Probably seeing the way that he’s starting to have trouble breathing, Jordan walks over to the drinks station and reaches over to slap a hand on Derek’s shoulder.  
  
“Breathe, man!”  
  
Shrugging off Jordan’s hand with a glare that’s more for show than anything else, Derek nonetheless takes a deep breath as he looks over to the far side of the room.  
  
Thankfully, neither of the people that he’s looking at seemed to have noticed Jordan’s rather loud arrival. As a matter of fact, Stiles and Lydia don’t even seem to notice that anything has happened outside of their little bubble.  
  
“So, is today the day?”  
  
Derek sees that Jordan is looking at the same thing, eyes warm and fixated on the strawberry blond of the pair.  
  
“That depends. Are you finally going to tell Lydia how you feel?”  
  
“Like you have any room to talk!”  
  
With a snort, Derek makes his way over to the till when he notices a girl in the far corner making her way to the front. “So, no then.”  
  
Jordan huffs at Derek’s back but waits until he’s finished both ringing up the order and making it before responding. “Until you finally give Stiles that cup of sugared monstrosity he calls a drink and you tell him how you feel, then you have no place to tease me about not talking to Lydia.”  
  
“Right,” Derek mutters, wiping down the counters with a sigh. “It’s not like you’ve known her longer than I’ve known Stiles, after all…”  
  
“What was that?!?”  
  
“Nothing!”  
  
Another customer keeps Jordan from retaliating, but not from finding a seat near the counter to wait Derek out. Sighing heavily, Derek moves over to the coffee machine to mull over the events that have led him to where he was right now.

Stiles and Derek had met one afternoon in the Beacon Hill’s Library, at what originally started as a way for Jordan to try to talk to Lydia but ended up in a heated debate of what constituted a ‘real’ cup of coffee.   
  
He still maintains that Stiles should’ve paid better attention to which foam container was his, Stiles insists that Derek needed to learn not to hate himself and how to make a proper cup of coffee.   
  
Derek _can_ make coffee. He’s good at it. What he’s _not_ good at are those fancy, way-too-many-ingredients _concoctions_ that Stiles adored. It was the reason that he started working at _A Handful of Beans_ , after all…   
  
Because, somewhere between debates and stilted conversations when they met each other outside of their study groups, Derek managed to develop a bit of a crush.   
  
So, what had he decided the best course of action was? Getting a job at a coffee house that he knew Stiles frequented, all while trying to learn how to make Stiles’ favorite drink.   
  
Hearing a heavy sigh from his best friend, Derek looks up to see him glancing over at Stiles and Lydia’s table again. Looking over, Derek watches as Stiles places a gentle hand on Lydia’s shoulder as he offers her a sip of his coffee, lips barely moving as he mutters something that has her laughing softly.   
  
There’s another sigh from Jordan and Derek can’t help but ask the question that keeps him from finally admitting to Stiles how he feels, from trying to push his friend a little harder to admit his own feelings.   
  
“What if he says no? What if they _both_ say no?”   
  
It’s common knowledge that Stiles and Lydia are close, but everyone has a different definition of _how_ close. Derek can’t ask their friends, because Scott McCall hates him for some strange reason and Kira Yukimura is too nice to want to gossip about people she cares about.   
  
“Then we get really drunk and find comfort in each other’s arms?”   
  
Derek thumps Jordan’s shoulder, a grin making its way across his face at his friend’s ridiculousness. “Come on, man. Be serious."   
  
There’s a smattering of laughter from the table in the corner and then Jordan gets this _look_ in his eyes.   
  
Derek _hates_ that look. That look has got him in more trouble than Laura’s ever done, even in one of her more harebrained moments. It’s enough for Derek to immediately move so that he’s standing at the part of the counter that is the furthest from Jordan.   
  
Jordan swallows hard before straightening his spine and walking over to Lydia's table. Derek shakes his head, but his eyes can't help but glance over to where Stiles is sitting, head bopping along with the music in his headphones.   
  
Stiles’ head suddenly jerks up after a second, his eyes darting over to Lydia in a glare before turning his head in the direction of her nod. His eyes grow wide when he sees Jordan heading their way, immediately stumbling to his feet at another pointed jerk.   
  
For a painful moment, Derek thinks that Stiles is flailing because he likes _Jordan_. Thankfully, Stiles trips rather unsubtly from his table, taking the chair he was sitting in and leaving the one that is beside Lydia oh-so-conveniently empty.   
  
Lydia’s cheeks are a light pink by the time Stiles is finished with his little maneuver, dropping his things on the table next to where they were sitting with a clatter, but neither her nor Jordan are really paying him much attention at this point...   
  
“Hi.”   
  
“Hi.”   
  
Rolling his eyes, Derek leaves the pair of them to their ridiculousness. He's drawn to where Stiles sits, an empty table around him and he decides that Jordan isn’t the only one that can be brave today.   
  
Grateful that his shift is almost over anyway, Derek sets about making his special ‘Stiles drink’ and a slightly more normal cup for himself. He gets done about the time his replacement comes in, so he gives her a nod as he clocks out before picking up the drinks and heading to Stiles’ table.   
  
There’s a soft gasp behind him, but Derek doesn’t really care about whatever it was that made the girl so flustered _this_ time, and instead focuses on making his way to Stiles without giving in to the need to flee.   
  
Soon enough, he’s standing next to where Stiles is sitting, headphones back in his ears. Clearing his throat gets him nothing from the other boy, so Derek instead sets the drink down in Stiles’ line of sight, which always works in getting attention as he takes the seat opposite him.   
  
Once more, Stiles’ head snaps up and once more, his eyes grow wide. Thankfully, instead of immediately vacating the premises, he gives Derek this grin that makes him glad that he was already sitting down.   
  
“Hey, Derek! Is this another mix you want me to try?”   
  
“Not really?”   
  
Stiles raises his brows at the hesitancy in Derek’s tone and it makes Derek want to just leave, maybe smack his past self for thinking that it was clever to find out Stiles’ favorite flavors of coffee by asking him to be a guinea pig for Derek’s 'mixes'.   
  
He wants Stiles to just _get it_ , for him not to have to spell out what it is he feels for the other boy… It’s not that Derek doesn’t _want_ Stiles to know, it’s more that Derek’s worried that he’ll either make it sound like it’s no big deal or go _the complete opposite direction_ and freak Stiles out.   
  
In the end, Derek just huffs out a breath and asks, “Do you remember a month ago when we got into another debate about coffee and you said that…”   
  
His sentence trails off because Stiles seems distracted, his eyes constantly going over to where Jordan is talking with Lydia, and Derek is so on edge that he can’t help but snap, “Am I boring you?”   
  
Stiles jerks guiltily, eyes wide when they meet Derek’s gaze again and a light flush on his cheeks. Derek has to bite his tongue to keep from immediately letting him off the hook and instead raises his brows in question.   
  
That just makes Stiles turn _redder_ and mumble something that sounds suspiciously like ‘unfair’ before giving Lydia’s table his back, giving Derek his full and undivided attention.   
  
Now it’s _Derek’s_ turn to feel his face warming up as Stiles earnestly states, “Sorry, dude. That was way rude of me. I was just worried for Lyds because-” and here Stiles decides to _lean almost completely into Derek’s space_ as he whispers, “-she totally has a thing for Parrish and I just want this to go well for her, ya know? That he sees _Lydia_ and not the Ice Queen.”   
  
A smattering of laughter following that statement shows that Stiles has nothing to worry about, even as he peeks over his shoulder with a grin. He only stares for a second before giving his head a little shake and focusing on Derek again.   
  
“Anyway! Continue on, my man! You have my full attention.”   
  
With that, Stiles leans back and takes a sip of his drink, a soft moan slipping past his lips at the first taste.   
  
“Dude! This is like, the perfect coffee! How did you know?”   
  
Taking the opening for what it was, Derek meets Stiles’ gaze head-on despite the heat he can feel covering his face as he states, “Because you always said the greatest declaration of love, in your case at least, was for someone to make a drink that had all of your favorite flavors in it.”   
  
“Man, you remember that? That was like, half a year ago! You really-”   
  
For the man that Lydia had once said was the only one that ever gave her a run for her money, it takes longer than Derek thought for Stiles to get what he’s saying. Nevertheless, understanding comes in the form of a dropped jaw and a high pitched “ ** _ME?_** ” that makes Derek glad that he doesn’t have super hearing.   
  
For a moment, the entire café is silent. Derek can feel the back of his neck burning, as well as see Jordan’s grinning face out of the corner of his eye, but he doesn’t look away from Stiles’ shocked face and the place eventually returns to the same level of noise there was as before.   
  
Stiles is still apparently in shock when everyone else goes back to minding their own business, no doubt with a new topic of conversation, and it’s starting to make Derek worry a little bit.   
  
His “Stiles?” seems to snap the other boy out of his stupor and Stiles nearly flails his drink off the table when he makes a gesture that Derek can’t really interpret.   
  
Derek makes sure that Stiles’ drink doesn’t spill, merely because he spent a lot of time on it, not because he needs something to do with his hands and to keep him from running away.   
  
It takes another minute for Stiles to realize that he needs to use his words - a rarity indeed - and when he does, it’s just a jumble of, “But you always hang out with Parrish! And Erica! And Boyd! And freaking Isaac Lahey with his freaking _scarves_!”   
  
Derek is not sure what to say to that. Was that even English? “What does that have to do with anything?”   
  
“You’re all _gorgeous_! Why the hell would you want to date me when they’re all-”   
  
“Maybe because I don’t judge my future partners based solely on their looks?”   
  
While not as loud as Stiles was, there is a decent lull in the café after Derek’s words and he glares at the table that they’re sitting at. Maybe this was a bad idea. Maybe Derek was the only one that looked forward to them meeting for the conversations that followed, the bits of the other’s personality that showed through…   
  
A soft touch to the back of his hand has Derek looking up to see Stiles gazing at him with an expression of regret and shame, throat bobbing as he swallows before speaking. “That’s not what I meant, Derek. Not really. I meant that you all are so talented and smart, the lot of you are like those posters for the popular clique on those stupid coming-of-age movies. Meanwhile, I might be a side character, the comic relief if I’m _lucky_ and I just don’t see-”   
  
“You’re way more than the comic relief, Stiles!” Derek isn’t really sure where this metaphor is coming from, but it sounds like Stiles thinks he isn’t good enough for Derek and that can’t be further from the truth! “You’re loyal and smart, willing to go to bat for your friends and family, no matter whether or not anyone else thinks it’s the right thing. You make sure that your Dad stays healthy, Lydia stays humble, and Scott stays grounded! You’re… you’re… why are you looking at me like that?!?”   
  
He’s never seen the look on Stiles’ face before, a mixture of shock, understanding, and fondness. The closest that’s ever appeared had been a day in their early relationship – long before they were even _friends_ \- that preluded Stiles actually talking to him like a human being instead of fighting all the time…   
  
It takes prodding at Stiles’ arm before he snaps out of whatever trance he was in and takes Derek’s breath away when he answers with a “The fact that you’re always trying to find something good in everyone is what makes you gorgeous, Der.”   
  
Derek just stares at him, wondering at how Stiles can say just what he means when he needs to, hyper-aware of the fact that his hand is still covering Derek’s own. He wants to list more things about Stiles, the things that will show him that it isn’t _just_ Derek ‘trying to find something good’, but things that are _actually_ good!   
  
Stiles beats him to the punch again by asking, “Do you have any plans for next Friday?”   
  
Blinking at the subject change, Derek decides to let the subject drop for now. It’s clear that Stiles doesn’t want to talk about it and he’ll deal with that later. “Um, I think I have a shift here after school, but then I’m free at six. Why?”   
  
“Because there’s a new Marvel movie coming out and I want you to go with me.”   
  
Rolling his eyes, Derek tries to be happy that they’re still friends after his confession and Stiles’ deflection as he huffs, “I know that, Stiles. We’ve been going to those as a group for a while now.”   
  
“Yeah, but this time I want you to go as my date.”   
  
Derek is pretty sure that his eyes are as wide as saucers, unable to comprehend what is happening here. He hears smothered laughter somewhere in the café but he can’t really focus past the soft look that Stiles is giving him.   
  
“Me?”   
  
He gets an even bigger grin at his unconscious echo of Stiles’ own shock, while the boy in question nods and says, “Yeah. Turns out this guy l like wasn’t as out of my league as I thought.”   
  
“Nobody is out of your league, Stiles. You’re in a whole class of your own.”   
  
It turns out that Stiles was also aware of the fact that his hand was still on Derek’s because he shifts his grip so that their fingers are entwined and murmurs, “I think I’m starting to believe that, big guy. Especially if you’re there to convince me of it.”   
  
“I will be. Starting with our date.”


End file.
